14 DAY TRIAL // Take-Two Interactive, the publishing partner of Grand Theft Auto 5 developer Rockstar Games, believes that recent events in which Australian retailers are refusing to sell GTA 5 due to public pressure, violates freedom of expression.
GTA 5 launched last year across the PS3 and Xbox 360 platforms, quickly selling tens of millions of copies worldwide, and recently saw a re-release for the PS4 and Xbox One consoles, where it once again sold a lot of copies, ahead of its PC debut in January of 2015.
GTA 5 isn't available for purchase at certain Australian retailers
However, while various controversies always follow a new GTA release, in Australia things have taken a more serious turn, as after a petition from a number of people was forwarded to two specific retailers in the country, the actual stores decided to stop selling GTA 5.
While a representative of its publisher called the situation disappointing, Take-Two President Karl Slatoff is much more serious in his reaction, while talking during a presentation at the BMO Capital Markets 2014 Technology & Digital Media Conference, via GamesIndustry.
According to Slatoff, it's perfectly fine if GTA 5 isn't to everyone's tastes as the company doesn't want to sell a game to everyone on the planet. However, if those who don't like it try to stop others from having a chance to acquire it, then the freedom of expression and choice is violated.
"It's one thing for someone to not want to buy a piece of content, which is completely understandable," Slatoff says. "And that's really the solution. If you don't like it and it's offensive to you, then you don't buy it. But for a person or a group of people to try to make that decision for millions of people. We have 34 million people who bought Grand Theft Auto, and if these folks had their way, none of those people would be able to buy Grand Theft Auto. And that really just flies in the face of everything that free society is based on."
The new decisions might lead to a slippery slope
Slatoff also believes that the new decisions could lead to a slippery slope that, while not affecting the financial figures of Take-Two, could set a precedent.
"It's the freedom of expression, and to try to squelch that is a dangerous and slippery slope to go down. So it's really more disappointing for us in that regard than it is in the context of our business. Our business is going to be completely unaffected by this; it doesn't make a difference to us. At the end of the day though, it's not something you want because it's a poor leadership decision."
Grand Theft Auto 5 is still available for purchase at many Australian stores, not to mention via the online marketplaces set up by Sony and Microsoft for the PS4, PS3, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. You can also check out our Xbox One review of GTA 5.
